Chris and Jeff Galvin's first restaurant, the ever popular Bistrot de Luxe, celebrates its tenth year open in 2015 and the chefs are honouring the achievement with a special menu of their favourite creations from the past ten years. We take a closer look at the Galvin brothers' chosen summer recipes for this Dishes of the Decade celebration.
Chris and Jeff Galvin's first restaurant, the ever popular Bistrot de Luxe, celebrates its tenth year open in 2015 and the chefs are honouring the achievement with a special menu of their favourite creations from the past ten years. We take a closer look at the Galvin brothers' chosen summer recipes for this Dishes of the Decade celebration.
2015 marks ten years since Jeff and Chris Galvin opened Bistrot de Luxe, their much loved Baker Street eatery and the first restaurant in their ever expanding empire. Due to the significance of this achievement the Galvin brothers thought hard about a suitable way of celebrating: ‘after five years, we made a plate and gave it to all our favourite customers, but the day comes and goes, so we had the idea of celebrating for a whole year.’
To pay homage to the past, present and future of Bistrot de Luxe the chefs have created a special ‘Dishes of the Decade’ menu, comprising both seasonal favourites and perennial signatures from across the past ten years. The Galvin brothers are known for their contemporary take on classic French cuisine, with Bistrot de Luxe’s menus in particular a careful balance of the rustic and the refined.
So far we have shared their winter menu, featuring Lasagne of Dorset crab, Apple tarte Tatin and Caramelised veal brains with beurre noisette. Spring’s menu showcased some exquisite seafood dishes - Fillet of John Dory with orange glazed endive and a rich Soupe de poisson - and the season culminated in May’s stunning Tagine of lamb with preserved lemon.
Their chosen dishes for summer, too, offer real variety. June’s dish of the decade is Boudin noir with pomme purée and glazed grapes, an iconic menu stalwart full of rich, comforting flavours that helps one overlook the month’s somewhat changeable weather. With generous chunks of boudin noir - a form of French black pudding - this sausage recipe will transport you back to the rustic French bistros from holidays gone by.
Fillet of sea bass “au pistou”, the chosen dish for July, is bound to become a real summer favourite for anyone trying it at home. Pan-fried fillets of succulent sea bass are served on a bed of summer vegetable soup, with a garlic and basil pistou - the French form of pesto - stirred through before serving to add a burst of colour and flavour.
August's plate is Escabeche of yellowfin tuna with aubergine purée and herbs, a charming starter dish. The tuna is marinated in citrus, salt and spices - based on the Mediterranean custom escabeche - before being briefly seared to leave the inside rare and succulent, served up with aubergine caviar and a salad of frisée and fresh herbs. Like many of the other dishes the brothers have selected, this seafood starter has been a popular fixture across several of their restaurants for some time.
Each month, lucky diners (selected at random) will receive their dish of the decade on the house, presented on a special Dishes of the Decade plate. For up-to-date news on the celebrations, follow @galvin_brothers on Twitter and the hashtag #DishesoftheDecade
Galvin Bistrot de Luxe
66 Baker Street
London
W1U 7DJ
Tel: 020 7935 4007
Please sign in or register to send a comment to Great British Chefs.